Month: May 2016

A clean and crisp high altitude coffee, this Guatemalan bean hails from a group of farmers in the Acatenango Valley. The farm is part of the Asproguate cooperative which contains around 150 small holder producers from both Acatenango (where this coffee is from) and Coban, a region in central Guatemala. The cooperative is committed to giving its shareholders access to the larger international coffee market. This access gives smaller farms the opportunity to grow their businesses, and it gives fervent coffee drinkers the chance to sip some of Guatemala’s finest coffees.

The unique flavors in this coffee are cultivated by two primary factors. The high altitude of growth (1900-2000 meters) lends to the creation of bright and clean flavors in the coffee. This coffee is also characterized by the marked wet and dry seasons of Acetenango that create an ideal growing condition and allow for traditional sun drying methods to be used.

The Coop, whose mission is to establish fair trade among Guatemalan coffee growers, produces around 1000 bags of coffee a year. These high quality micro lots are grown in nutrient dense volcanic soil at an altitude as high as 2000 meters above sea level. Volcanic soil is particularly beneficial to coffee growers because of the abundance of nutrients it provides.

A roastery favorite, the cup of this Guatemalan is a dark semisweet chocolate treat with notes of apple and strawberry. Full flavored, it dissolves into a smooth buttery finish. We have roasted the bean to a perfect dark roast to wrap its best flavors in rich, golden dark roast body and bold aroma. Easy to drink, this coffee pairs perfectly with a lazy Sunday morning, as well as it does with an after Saturday night desert. You can pick up your own bag here.

This quaint little shop is, in the truest sense, a family run business. Linnea gets up before the crack of dawn each morning to begin baking that day’s treats. She has three little helpers (her daughters) in the kitchen which is attached just off the back of their home. When the baked goods leave the kitchen via Bob (husband and father), the girls take turns doing the dishes and cleaning, while Linnea gets Ruby’s Roost ready to open. Right at 7am Wednesday to Friday (8am on Sat & Sun), Bob is behind the espresso machine, ready to take Tiny Footprint espresso and turn it into any one of their deliciously crafted drinks. Linnea is stationed at the bakery case, waiting to greet you with a smile and a friendly hello. If you show up on a Saturday morning, you will catch their oldest daughter behind the register.

This shop is located just off the Dakota Rail Regional Trail, perfect for the touring cyclist to re-hydrate, or the local farmer to swing in for his morning cup of joe. Among the locals, this business is known for its superior coffee and high quality baked goods.

In case you haven’t heard yet, now is your warning: in my opinion, there are several reasons to stop at Ruby’s Roost in Mayer, MN – but the most popular reason? the caramel cinnamon rolls. This baked good is what draws people in, from miles away. In my time there yesterday, I watched the bakery case go from 2 full pans of caramel cinnamon rolls, to a look of despair on the first customer who realized she had missed the day’s rolls. I was lucky enough to indulge in one myself and it was heavenly. Their menu includes a variety of other beverage options (including Kombucha), light sandwiches and Sebastian Joe’s ice cream.

It would be a shame if I didn’t share the story of Ruby. If you haven’t noticed already, none of the people who run the business are named Ruby. That’s because Ruby was the name of their family chicken. Ruby has since passed on, but her legacy remains throughout the shop. She even had her own picture commissioned as a mosaic (as seen directly behind the counter), on their mugs, in their logo…

And out front of the shop, next to their outdoor seating area and bike racks. Stop in and say hello to our friends at Ruby’s Roost in Mayer, MN, you’ll be glad you did.

Tiny Footprint Coffee is excited to announce the return of one of our favorite coffees, Flores Bajawa Ngura. It is an organic treat from the East Nusa Tenggara Province in Indonesia. A wet hulled and sundried coffee (Ngura translates to “Wet Hulled”), Bajawa Ngura is grown in volcanic loam soil at 1,200 – 1,600 meters ( 4,000 – 5,200 ft).

Flores is a small island on the Indonesian archipelago, located between Java and Timor, due south of Sulawesi. Best known for the recent discoveries of “Flores Man” (Homo Floresiensis, aka the “hobbit” Homo Erectus) and miniaturized elephant fossils is, ironically, the home of king sized rats, Komodo dragons and giant saltwater crocodiles. The avian population, including endangered endemics like the Flores Hanging Parrot and once thought to be extinct Flores Scops Owl, is under extreme pressure from persistent deforestation. A ray of hope is the organic/shade-grown/Rainforest Alliance certified coffee project launched in 2005 by the one name visionary Sirup (head of the Indonesian Coffee and Cocoa Research Institute) and two farming communities.

Over the past 11 years the project has vastly improved both the pay and the coffee processing options that the farmers have received. In fact, the farmers are now receiving above fair trade price for their cherry where they once faced a grim poverty-inducing 20-40% discount to the New York futures price. The help and support that Sirup’s project has lent to local farms in Flores has created opportunities for them to grow and produce exemplary coffee, all while protecting Flores unique environment.

Our Bajawa Ngura coffee is a particularly good example: the flavors are dark and rich but with low acidity and an elegant balance. Notes of semi-sweet chocolate and vanilla compliment the dark cherry and cola notes. The cup finishes with a light aroma of jasmine, perfected by our roaster in our medium roast. Head on over to our shop to pick up a bag of your own.

It is our pleasure to announce the arrival of our newest coffee. Ayele (seen above) is a father of 12, who inherited this coffee farm from his father. The farm has seen three generations of the Dula family. This lot is part of a project that rewards individual farmers for their skill and dedication in producing great cupping coffees. This is the second lot we’ve offered from the Dula Family’s farm in Dhudhufa (translates as viper), which is located at over 6000 ft. above sea level in the Wenago Woreda of the Gedeo Zone.

Raised drying beds at Dhudhufa

Somewhat confusingly in the coffee trade (yes, you can say that’s redundant), most of the coffees from Ethiopia’s Gedeo Zone are called Yirgacheffe, even if they do not come from Yirga Chefe Wordea proper (woreda translates loosely as district). Yirgacheffe is adjacent to Wenago Wordea and also located in the Gedeo Zone. Compounding this quirk in taxonomy: these coffees are differentiated in specialty coffee from other coffees produced in the Sidama Zone. The Sidama zone lies directly to Gedeo’s north and are referred to as originating from Sidamo. So, Aylele produced in Wenago under the umbrella of the Yirgacheffe Small Farmers Cooperative Union, properly carries the esteemed, if not exacting, Yirgacheffe mark.

This is one of those trifecta coffees, being organically produced, fairly trade (above Fair-trade price) and 100% Shade-grown. The coffee will be sold as a light roast here at Tiny Footprint Coffee. After several rounds of cupping, we were able to pull out Aromas of jasmine and rose that transition to full, sweet flavors of honey and cocoa as it moves through your mouth. They do it right in Yirgacheffe. This coffee is similar to another one from the same region. The Ethiopia Yirgacheffe -Worka Cooperative is a dark roast we keep as long as we can through out the season. Its Jammy fruit flavor (think: dried strawberry and blueberry) and floral aroma make it a no brainer.